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High-risk format
Some versions of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? have adopted a high-risk format, which disables the second fixed milestone in favor of an adjustable milestone that the contestant can set anywhere between question 6 and question 14, but still retains the first fixed milestone at question 5. The UK version adopted the high-risk format for its 20th Anniversary celebration in 2018. If the contestant flunks out prior to reaching their selected second milestone, they drop all the way back down to the prize value for question 5. Even worse, a few versions of the show have adopted an extra-high-risk format, which disables both fixed milestones, and allows the contestant to select only one adjustable milestone, and if they flunk out prior to reaching their selected milestone, they lose absolutely everything, and leave with nothing at all. Mechanics Before the mechanics of the high-risk format can be explained, the Money Tree must be shown first, in order to put it into perspective. The money tree shown below is the original UK version, which was used for the 2018 revival, which adopted the high-risk format. Guaranteed milestones at shown in bold. * £100 * £200 * £300 * £500 * £1,000 * £2,000 * £4,000 * £8,000 * £16,000 * £32,000 * £64,000 * £125,000 * £250,000 * £500,000 * £1,000,000 Normally, question 10, worth £32,000, would be a fixed milestone, as it was originally in the old format, but in the new high-risk format, the contestant can now adjust the second milestone anywhere they want, from as low as question 6, worth £2,000, up to as high as question 14, worth £500,000. Advantages and disadvantages If the contestant sets the second milestone too low or too high, flunking out may be much more costlier than normal. On one hand, if the contestant sets the second milestone too low, at only £2,000, and flunks out on the £1,000,000 question, they lose £498,000, which is £30,000 more than the £468,000 they would normally lose if the second milestone was set at its traditional level of £32,000. On the other hand, if the contestant sets the second milestone too high, at £500,000, and flunks out on the £1,000,000 question, they won't lose anything, but if they flunk out on the £500,000 question itself (or any other question prior to their selected milestone), they will drop all the way back down to just £1,000; if their milestone question is set to the £500,000 question, and they flunk out on their £500,000 question, they will lose £249,000, which is £31,000 more than the £218,000 they would normally lose if the second milestone was set at its traditional level of £32,000. Extra-high-risk format If both fixed milestones at questions 5 and 10 are disabled, the format is called an extra-high-risk format, which allows the player to select only one adjustable milestone, and if they flunk out before they reach that milestone, they lose absolutely everything, and leave with nothing at all. This is the format used by the Russian version of the show from September 4, 2010, and over 500+ Russian contestants, including a number of celebrity contestants, have ended up leaving empty-handed due to flunking out prior to reaching their selected milestone. See Category:Empty-handed due to extra-high-risk format for a list of contestants who left with nothing due to playing on an extra-high-risk format. Super-extra-high-risk format A app called 'Millionaire 2019', on iOS and possibly Android. If you choose super-extra-high-risk-format, which allows the player to play with no adjustable milestone, and if they flunk out before they reach that 3,000,000. they lose absolutely everything, and leave with nothing at all. Basically, zero. Questions 1-14 will not have a milestone in this format and Question 15 will have the top prize.Category:Empty-handed due to extra-high-risk format Category:Gameplay Category:Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?